Chew on This

We all know that horses can colic because of the nature of their digestive tracts, but did you ever think about the advantage of not having to rest to chew cud? Horses have an organ called the cecum which allows them to digest plant foods quickly, while the horse is on the move or on the run. Talk about a great way to survive.

In one of my favorite books, "Why Horses Do That" by Lisa Dines this further explains the clear advantage horses have over cows and over sheep for survival. Goats, sheep, etc. hold their food for hours and therefore obtain more energy from less food, making them for favorable as meat animals.

So Mother Nature knew what she was doing when she created the horses digestive tract. Its quick, efficient, vital for survival, but definitely more easily disrupted than the digestive tracts of their farm buddies.

Happy Trails, Kathy Horsedrivensite.net